HBO Max isn’t worth subscribing to this September – here’s the streaming service I’d switch to instead

With the best streaming services continuing to push out a ridiculous volume of must-see entertainment, it's undoubtedly tricky figuring out which of those platforms you should subscribe to every month. Oh yes, make no mistake: many folks are stream-hopping, rotating subscriptions to maximize viewing, and to lessen strain on the ole wallet.

Yep, it's not just you – prices are rocketing (hello Apple TV+!) and with the rising costs of, well, everything, now's a good time to see where you can make a saving. And luckily, I'm right there with you. I've looked through all of the listings for the major streamers this coming September to see which libraries you gotta stay tuned in to, and which of those are ok to pause.

This month we'll be waving bye to the heat of summer and welcoming the chillier fall weather, which means, there's competition among the streamers to keep your attention on their content! Here's why I'm keeping the granddaddy of them all, Netflix, and why I'll be dropping HBO Max.

Here's why I'm keeping Netflix in September 2025

As we enter the dog days of summer, the heat is replaced by the crisp scents of autumn, and thoughts drift to being snuggled up in front of the TV with a great new show to get stuck into. We all need something to carry us through to spring, and I can't think of another that quite fits the bill like The Great British Bake Off!

Hitting Netflix on a week-by-week basis, Bake Off – or The Great British Baking Show as it's known in the US – drops its first episode on September 5. This classic slice of British comfort TV is the perfect antidote to the dark doldrums, and makes for a nice conversation starter if you're at a halloween party and don't know anyone ("Have you started Bake Off yet? Blimey, that incident with the flambéed fondant fancies!" is an opener you could try).

Fans of the gloomier doldrums may seek out something a little creepier for the month, however. Wednesday season 2 part 2 ought to assuage those spookier cravings and we pick up for the final batch of episodes. They are poised to arrive on September 3 and look set to carry on Wednesday's adventures at Nevermore Academy.

Elsewhere on the serial front, if you like your shows scripted, you'll be pleased as punch to see the new show from Peaky Blinders showrunner Steven Knight. The House of Guinness dives into the 1800s and follows the family that inherited the boozy empire. One of our writers described it as a show that's got more in common with Mike Flanagan's Netflix output than anything else, which has certainly sealed the deal for me. This limited eight-part series drops on September 25 so it'll keep you going well past the darkness of the clocks going back.

Another new series that I'm very excited for drops on the same day. Wayward hails from Mae Martin and stars Toni Collette as the headmistress of an academy in the town of Tall Pines. But this is no normal school, offering to cure troubled teens by turning them into something else. It's got a whiff of Disturbing Behavior about it, the late '90s horror-thriller starring Katie Holmes and James Marsden, and I for one, am here for it.

One of my personal favorites that genre fans should seek out is the entire series of Orphan Black that drops on September 1. Smart, funny, and moving, it's a sci-fi show with a difference that follows Tatiana Maslany's Sarah as she discovers she may be cloned…

Of course, there's plenty else hitting Netflix in September, including a raft of highly-rated movies that warrant adding to your watch or rewatch list. I'm excited to check out the 1987 adaptation of Stephen King's The Running Man that hits the streamer on September 1. This version of the horror meister's 1982 novel stars Arnold Schwarzenegger as a criminal who must evade capture by assassins in a televised event for all the world to see. This '80s take is well-worth a watch especially with Edgar Wright's new adaptation hitting the big screen in November.

... and why I'm dropping HBO Max

I'm normally a huge fan of HBO Max. The streamer that's had more names that I've had hot dinners tends to be a winner on a monthly basis, offering a steady supply of new releases that keep me handing over my subscription. But September? Eh, the offerings are lacklustre.

Granted, there's the latest Alex Garland flick Warfare that I've been keen to see, but apart from that there's little else to satisfy. Typically I'm excited by the line-up as there tends to be new genre fare that I've missed at cinemas to keep me going. But this month, I'm gonna skip out, keeping my fingers crossed for October though…

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